The traders of New Berk
by I dont live in reality
Summary: Hiccup wonders how Tuffnut and Snotlout could possibly be good traders.


Exited yelling outside warned Hiccup of potential mischief. He went to see what was going on, but luckily, it was only the New Berk tradership returning. It had just appeared on the horizon. Children ran to the docks with their parents shortly behind. Everyone wondered what amazing or exotic stuff the traders brought. Ruffnut passed Hiccup, dragging Fishlegs along. 'Ruffnut, we really don't need anything from them!', Fishlegs tried to convince her. 'Perhaps not,' she answered, 'but I haven't seen my brother in weeks! He should never have gone into trades. I want to see him again.' The candid wish seemed a satisfactory reason for Fishlegs to walk all the way to the docks. Astrid suddenly appeared, as she came to stand beside Hiccup. 'Shouldn't you go? You're chief.' He sighed. 'Yes, Astrid, yes, you're right.'

Down at the docks, Snotlout and Tuffnut were showing their wares. They had dried fruit from the south and white yak-wool from the north, which many Berkians seemed to be interested in. As Hiccup approached, Ruffnut had run down to her brother to give him an out-of-character hug. Snotlout rolled his eyes and spotted Hiccup. 'Chief!' He said, in an equally out-of-character submissive tone. 'Good news from that new settlement! The chief is open to trading, though only after he's met you.' Hiccup felt his spirits fall a little. A chief wanting a meeting was probably not willing to sail to New Berk. So, of course, he'd have to sail to their island. 'That's, uh, great Snotlout.' Hiccup said, trying and failing to sound exited. Tuffnut untangled himself from his sister's embrace, with a muttered 'Your marriage made you soft.', and went to look for something. He knocked over a barrel with seeds, spilling them over the deck of the ship and started digging in a chest, throwing its strange contents aside. Hiccup saw a mace, embedded with jewels, a dagger made from silver and a bunch of bright orange rope be tossed on the deck before Tuffnut triumphantly held up a piece of paper. Ruffnut was looking at the mess her brother had made and felt the need to comment 'You're as messy as ever.' before she went over to Fishlegs, who was looking at a basket filled with books. 'This,' declared Tuffnut, 'is the list of demands from that other chief, chief.' Hiccup took it as Tuffnut handed it to him, dramatically official. Shaking his head, Hiccup turned away from their boat to go back to his house. He'd read the demands at home. Peacefully and quietly.

A few days later, they were ready to leave. Hiccup wasn't enthusiastic at all. He was mostly worried. He knew Tuffnut and Snotlout, which meant he knew their hazardous nature. They hadn't been traders long, and he'd been worried about it even before they started. Everything they did revealed they were unfit for the job. Their messiness, their joking around, their general air of not taking anything seriously. Still they were successful, and Hiccup was curious how they could possibly pull that off. So, no matter how little he wanted to set sail with them, he wanted to know how they behaved in their working environment.

Astrid surprise-hugged him from behind and rested her chin on his shoulder. 'Go easy on them, Hiccup.' she advised him. 'I will, but as acting chief I have to be at least a little bit critical.' he reminded his wife. She let go of him and he turned around. She didn't speak, but her eyes conveyed a warning. Hiccup tried to talk over it. 'I will only be as critical as the situation demands.'. 'Allright, just...', she sighed, 'don't forget they are your friends first and foremost.' With that, she walked away, back to the village and Snotlout called him. 'We're leaving!'. 'Off to new adventures, I guess.', Hiccup whispered to himself.

'Just sit back and enjoy the ride.' It was a quote Tuffnut had said a hundred times before on their journey, each time Hiccup tried to interfere with anything. They didn't allow him to steer, they didn't allow him to adjust the sails, they didn't even allow him to check the load below the deck. As a result, he had just been sitting around above deck for two days, and it was driving him mad. Sooner or later he'd have to do something. Anything. If not he'd jump into the sea.

Tuffnut pulled on some ropes as Snotlout steered the wheel. It had been enough, Hiccup decided. He got up and ran below deck, at which Tuffnut jumped from his place by the mast, clearly startled. 'No, don't!...' It was too late. Hiccup had already seen the hold. To his horror it wasn't clean nor organized as it should be. Sacks of seeds, vegetables and fruits were scattered across the room, though none of them were closed. A few wooden beams hung loose, and Hiccup could only hope they weren't important to the ship's structure. Weapons and books lay here and there. The edges of the flooring were damp from the surrounding sea. Tuffnut stood behind Hiccup, overlooking his own mess. 'Maybe this is a bad moment, but we're also pretty off course...'

'Tuff, Snotlout, I thought better of you. Not only do you keep food in the least hygienic circumstances possible, food, mind you, my own citizens eat, but you have the nerve to tell me to sit down while you don't even once check your course. Result? We are a day behind on schedule! How do you suppose I sign a treaty when I am not even there? I wonder why I gave you these posts in the first place.' They had anchored the ship and Hiccup was reprimanding his traders. Tuffnut fiddled with his hands, but Snotlout wasn't having it. 'Do you think anyone else would be able to do this job? Maybe we make a mess of our hold. So what? We deliver. We have established treaties with a lot of islands, islands with merchandise New Berk could only dream of. Perhaps we could improve the hygiene, I'll give you that. Still you have no right to insult our trading.' Tuffnut still looked embarrassed. He wouldn't look Hiccup in the eye. Snotlout however crossed his arms and stared at Hiccup in rebellion.

That suddenly reminded him of Astrid's warning. They are your friends first and foremost, he heard her say in his mind. He tried to see the situation differently. He'd gotten Tuffnut so far he wouldn't look straight at him and Snotlout was clearly angry. That wasn't how you treated friends.

He breathed in, then he breathed out. 'I'm sorry. Let me try that again. I know maps better than anyone. Let me steer the ship, we'll arrive late but we'll arrive. Meanwhile you can clean the hold. Then, once we are on their island, you can show me your skills in negotiating.' Begrudgingly, they both agreed to this.

'Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third!', the broad-shouldered chief welcomed him. His blonde beard sported numerous braids, the sign of a true viking at heart. They had finally arrived, indeed a day late, at the island with a fairly new village on it. 'Hello there,' Hiccup greeted back, 'well, since we're late, why don't we start our negotiating straight away?' The other chief seemed taken aback by his direct demeanor, but complied anyway. 'Ready the Main Hall!', he ordered his citizens. As they walked the path to this hall, Snotlout nudged Hiccup. 'You shouldn't be so awfully direct, people need small talk and flattery to get to like you.', he advised. They passed newly built houses, with young families living in them. 'We don't have time for that.' Hiccup shot back.

As they entered the hall, a feast had been prepared for them. 'A feast for the tongue, a feast for the eyes.', Tuffnut said, which sparked some laughter with a few people present. They sat down at the long table, the two chiefs at the head. Tuffnut was joking around with some of the children that hung around the hall, while Snotlout was flirting with at least three young women. Hiccup overlooked this worriedly, hoping they wouldn't make New Berk look bad. He wanted to start bargaining about the trading, but saw to his surprise the other chief was looking at Tuffnut and Snotlout as well. 'You lot seem allright.' the chief said, looking him in the eye. 'Other traders are so awfully serious. You can take a joke, I see.' Hiccup was taken aback by this reaction. He glanced at his two friends again. The children had been running around frantically when they entered the hall, but now they had sat down in a half circle around Tuffnut and were listening intently to the one or other story about dragon manure he was telling. The young women Snotlout was flirting with seemed to like his advancements, as they giggled and smiled. Maybe, Hiccup thought, they really are the best traders we could wish for. Who else would be shameless enough to flirt with all the women present at once? Who else would know enough funny and strange stories to keep a flock of kids entertained? They showed care for and involvement in the island. Their actions implied an interest in the settlement and its people, instead of an interest solely in the treaty. Hiccup smiled to himself. When did he become so political?

The treaty was quickly signed, with good conditions for both sides. Before long, they were on their way back to New Berk.

As they sailed into the harbour, Astrid stood on the docks. She waved from afar and as the ship was fastened steadily to the quay, Hiccup jumped into her arms. She laughed. 'So how did it go?' Hiccup just smiled as Tuffnut and Snotlout came to stand beside them. 'Let's just say I've learned a thing or two about trading.' Hiccup said, giving his friends a knowing look. 'We also shouldn't forget the 'thing or two' we've learned about hygiene.' Tuffnut added, and they all laughed. Except Astrid, who was left to wonder what terrrible hygiene that joke implied.


End file.
